Preview: Sri Lanka v New Zealand, 2nd T20I

Rain has severely hampered the limited-overs series between Sri Lanka and New Zealand but things are looking slightly promising for the 2nd and final T20I in Pallekele with clear weather being forecast. In the ODI series, which ended on a 1-1 note, rain was a regular visitor, forcing two games to be curtailed and one to be abandoned while the opening T20I too had to be cancelled due to wet weather. Both teams will now have their fingers in the hope of seeing some cricketing action.

Sri Lanka: Tillakaratne Dilshan and Kumar Sangakkara were in fine form with the bat in the ODI series - the former notched up three half-centuries in a row while the latter hit two consecutive fifties. ODI skipper Angelo Mathews did well in the first ODI, registering a half-century while, Mahela Jayawardene, after a couple of failures, found form in the last ODI, hitting a stroke-filled 46. These four form the core of the batting line-up and the hosts will be hoping that they deliver. They will also be eager for T20I captain Dinesh Chandimal, who struggled in the ODI series, to get amongst the runs.

Lasith Malinga and Nuwan Kulasekara are the main pacers in the Lankan attack. The former did not taste much success in the ODIs against the Black-Caps while the latter, along with Kyle Mills, was the highest wicket-taker in the 50-over games and was the lone bowler to pick up a four-wicket haul. Kulasekara and Malinga, along with Mathews, will be expected to handle the pace-bowling duties in the T20I while they also have the option of including Suranga Lakmal. In the spin department, Sachithra Senanayake and Ajantha Mendis are the front-line options while Seekkuge Prasanna and Ramith Rambukwella will be eager for an opportunity.

Team News: Sri Lanka followed a rotation policy during their T20I series against South Africa, leaving out one of the three senior batsmen. It remains to be seen if all three - Dilshan, Sangakkara and Jayawardene - will be included for Thursday's game or one of them makes way for youngster Kusal Perera. In the middle order, there is likely to be a toss-up between Lahiru Thirimanne and all-rounder Thisara Perera.

New Zealand: In the absence of three key players, the less-experienced likes of Tom Latham, Colin Munro and Anton Devcich will get another chance to showcase their skills. Latham came up with a splendid knock of 86 in the 2nd ODI that New Zealand won and in the same game, the experienced Luke Ronchi contributed with a crucial knock. The rest, however, have not done anything substantial in the series so far. Grant Elliot and Rob Nicol, who have played their fair share of matches for New Zealand, have not done much in this series while Munro and Devcich too have failed with the bat in this series. The Black-Caps will be hoping for a better effort from the batters as they look to end the tour on a high.

Captain Mills has been the pick of the New Zealand bowlers while Nathan McCullum and Devcich have also done a tidy job with the ball. Adam Milne has not picked up a wicket so far in the series while Mitchell McClenaghan, while being amongst the wickets, has been expensive. New Zealand will be hoping for a disciplined performance from the bowling unit as they seek a 1-0 series finish, weather permitting.

Team News: New Zealand suffered a setback before the T20I series with all-rounder Jimmy Neesham being ruled out due to a finger injury and the visitors will probably look to rope in Adam Milne as his replacement. The rest of the line-up will mostly consist of the players who played in the ODI series although Hamish Rutherford will be keen for a chance.

Numbers:

0: The number of times New Zealand have won a T20I against Sri Lanka in Sri Lanka. The Black-Caps, out of the four matches played so far, have lost two, and have tied one game while one match yielded no result.

10: Nathan McCullum's position on the list of highest wicket-takers in T20Is. McCullum, who occupies the 10th spot along with South Africa's Morne Morkel, has taken 43 wickets so far and is the only New Zealand bowler to feature in the top-ten list of highest wicket-takers in the T20I format.

Quotes:

Any cricketer gets frustrated when there's rain about. For every game to get affected is a bit disappointing for both teams and everyone involved, including the spectators, the fans and everyone who has a stake in the game: Kyle Mills expresses his disappointment with the scheduling of the series.